- Coach launched a campaign, “Find Your Courage,” that pairs virtual influencer imma with celebrity ambassadors Lil Nas X, Camila Mendes, Youngji Lee, Kōki and Wu Jinyan, per a press release.
- The effort, an extension of its previous “The Courage to Be Real” campaign, is inspired by artificial intelligence (AI) and sees imma visit each ambassador in their very own virtual worlds in a series of videos. The fashion house can even bring the campaign to gaming platforms and its Coach Tabby Shop pop-up.
- “Find Your Courage” looks to interact younger consumers across the complexities of identity and the changing definition of what it means to be “real,” themes of self-expression often present in marketing targeting Gen Z.
Coach is entreating consumers to seek out their courage with a campaign that fuses a reliable tactic — celebrity brand ambassadors — with an emerging one: the usage of virtual influencers. Utilizing imma allows the style house to underline the changing of idea of being “real,” whether speaking toward personal authenticity or the vagaries of the physical-virtual divide.
“’Find Your Courage’ is supposed to encourage our consumers to hunt down all possibilities for who they may be, despite the tensions and expectations in life they may feel,” said Coach Global Chief Marketing Officer and North America President Sandeep Seth in an announcement.
Imma, produced by Aww Inc., is billed in press materials as a “virtual human, model and digital creator” and takes her name from the Japanese word for “now.” The character debuted in 2018 and has appeared in content for Nike, Puma, Calvin Klein and other brands.
“For us, imma is the proper ambassador to inform this story because she is difficult the notion of what we consider ‘real’ today. Her journey in our campaign takes us right into a recent world that pushes the boundaries of self-expression and inspires us along the way in which,” said Seth.
Across five campaign videos, imma will visit the virtual world of every brand ambassador and study their unique “superpower.” The first video stars pop idol Lil Nas X and a virtual, life-sized chess board because the he teaches imma to “change the sport.” Future videos will feature rapper Youngji Lee, model Kōki and actors Camila Mendes and Wu Jinyan and revolve around taking risks, breaking the mold, evolving and exploring recent possibilities.
The effort was inspired by AI, which has seen renewed interest with the rise of generative AI technology like ChatGPT. Vallée Duhamel served as director while photography was handled by Charlie Engman. Along with the campaign videos, “Find Your Courage” includes gaming and experiential activations that might extend its reach in real and online worlds.
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